Word: mendelssohn
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...ease, as author Annie Dillard once wrote, is the way of perfection, violinist Gil Shaham may be the classical music world's most polished performer. By the end of his performance with the Boston Symphny Orchestra Saturday night, he had convinced the rapt audience at Symphony Hall that Mendelssohn violin concertos simply grew out of his gleaming Stradivarius without effort, toil or even a few hours' practice...
...Granted, Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor is one of the most popular and playable concertos in the violin repertoire. Upon the advice of the violinist for whom he wrote the concerto, Mendelssohn avoided difficult technical writing, not because it would make the piece inaccessible, but because it was not essential to the piece's form. Nothing, in fact, is superfluous to the concerto's form. Critics called this straightforward style innovative and even revolutionary in the then-stagnant concerto repertoire...
...Mendelssohn concerto is standard concert material simply because it is good, not because consummate performers like Gil Shaham like to play it. Shaham's masterful performance on Saturday night, though, drew out the piece's best qualities. Shaham began the violin solo with a rich, elegaic tone, bringing depth without melodrama to the tragic melody. He continued with a flexible tone that was glittering in his sublime upper register and lusty and rich in the low, and an impressive dynamic range that challenged the orchestra to match...
Shaham's treatment of the first movement cadenza was precise, relaxed and completely effective. Unlike most cadenzas which depart from the main theme to highlight the performer's virtuosity, Mendelssohn's provides the development that leads the movement to its end. The orchestra drew momentum from Shaham's graceful interpretation. It is difficult to say, however, whether it was this passion or sheer accident that caused conductor Seiji Ozawa to throw his baton into the cello section shortly before the end of the movement. The piece was nonetheless otherwise seamless (and an obliging cellist returned Ozawa's baton shortly after...
...Celebration of Brahms, Schubert, and Mendelssohn. Featuring the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra, Harvard Wind Ensemble, Harvard Glee Club, Radcliffe Choral Society and Harvard-Radcliffe Collegium Musicum. Tickets: $6/8/11 students; $8/11/13 general. Sanders Theatre...